Adrien goes from “player of the game” to waived. On the move, the timing and the player the Rockets get instead.

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The business of sports can be cruel, but rarely coincidental. Pop psychologists and sports conspiracy theorists would argue that there are no coincidences, but this time, they would be wrong.

Jeff Adrien has spent the season practicing hard and waiting. When he played, it was almost entirely to mop up routs. He finally got a real chance on Monday. With Samuel Dalembert and Jordan Hill lethargic, Kevin McHale called on Adrien in the first half and Adrien delivered. He had nine rebounds in his 17 minutes, bringing the energy that the Rockets lacked. Kyle Lowry called him the player of the game.

A day later, he was waived to make room for Greg Smith, a young center the Rockets released during training camp.

The immediate reaction would be to assume that Adrien was showcased, given minutes in the hopes that someone would make the Rockets an offer so they could get something for him before they lost him for nothing. That would be the wrong assumption.

Generally, teams don’t “showcase” players nearly as often as many assume. It usually applies only to veterans coming off injuries. The “showcase” minutes allow them to show they are healthy. Other than that, teams know better than to judge a player by a game or two. And they already have their opinions on guys like Adrien who has been widely scouted at Connecticut, in the D-League, in Europe and with the Warriors. (There were no personnel scouts at Monday’s game.)

The Rockets did not arrange for this week’s deadline to guarantee contracts. Non-guaranteed contracts had to be waived on Tuesday in order to clear in time to keep them from being guaranteed for the season. The Rockets had already paid the guaranteed portion of Adrien’s contract, but might have kept him past the deadline. But with teams rearranging their rosters ahead of the deadline, Smith was getting interest.

The Rockets could lose Adrien for nothing or lose Smith, who was playing for their D-League team, for nothing. (The contracts of Jonny Flynn, Terrence Williams and Hasheem Thabeet have greater potential to be useful at the trade deadline.)

Adrien’s playing time on Monday really was a coincidence. The Rockets did not arrange for Hill and Dalembert to sleep walk through their combined 14 ½ minutes. When McHale turned to Adrien, he did what players in that position typically do. He played as if it was the most important game of his career.

“When you get guys who feel they have not played as much as they like, they come out and play really hard,” McHale said before the game. He was talking about the Nuggets’ fill in starters, but he had described Adrien.

Adrien, however, is generally the player he will be. Experience could help in subtle ways, but he will remain a solid player, worth a spot on an NBA roster, with a great attitude and enough ability to contribute.

Smith is more intriguing. He turned 21 last month, has outstanding size at 6-10, 250, long arms and gigantic hands. His 68 percent shooting is the best ever in the D-League for a player with at least 400 minutes (weeding out the NBA players that pop in for a game or two.) He averaged 16.8 points and 8.3 rebounds with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers. It is unclear whether he is ready to help now, but the Rockets will not sign him for now. He is so young, he has room to grow.

He could turn out to be Joey Dorsey – or what the Rockets hoped Dorsey would turn out to be and then some.

The timing of the moves seems odd, but makes sense. And if nothing else, if Adrien’s play had sent a message to Dalembert and Hill that they have to play with energy to play at all, Smith can do that and bring the threat of a long day at practice with a brutish 21-year-old.